Free university study just months away

Likely scrapping of National Standards and charter schools

Free tertiary education i s coming under a Labour- led Government — with a student association also urging Jacinda Ardern to put an end to border arrests of student loan defaulters.

While policy agreements are yet to be released, it is very likely free tertiary education and training will be rolled out. There will also be wideranging reforms of the schooling sector, including the scrapping of National Standards and charter or partnership schools.

Labour wants eventually to introduce three years of free post- school study or training. During the campaign Ardern announced that would be brought forward, with one year free for everyone entering study or training from January 1 next year.

From 2021 those starting tertiary education would get two years free, and from 2024 three years. The overall cost of the package is $ 6 billion. Labour has also pledged to increase student allowances by $ 50 a week, and to restore postgraduate students’ eligibility for student allowances.

New Zealand First policy i s to introduce a universal living allowance, and a student debt write- off scheme that would give students free tertiary study by requiring them to work in New Zealand for the same period as their length of study.

The Greens’ policy i s to work towards free tertiary education, by capping and progressively reducing student fees.

Another possible change will be a hardline policy introduced under National which has seen several student loan defaulters arrested at the border.

Auckland University Students Association president Will Matthews said he hoped the new Government would review the policy and ultimately scrap it.

“Instead of focusing on criminalising these people we should be working on how to support students.”

Labour, New Zealand First and the Green Party are closely aligned on education policy, and all three have pledged to scrap National Standards and put an end to charter or partnership schools.

National Standards were the centrepiece of the National Party’s education policy before it came to power in 2008, and describe what students should be able to do in reading, writing and mathematics as they progress through levels 1 to 8, the primary and intermediate years.

The student achievement data is fiercely opposed by education unions and there have been concerns about how teacher assessments can vary between schools.

Partnership schools are privately run but publicly funded. They are likely to be kept open but classified as special character schools.

Asked if charter schools and National Standards would be abolished, NZ First education spokeswoman Tracey Martin said she could not outline the agreements yet, but “have a look at what NZF, Labour and the Greens campaigned on and take a guess”.

During the campaign, Ardern said if Kiwis in Australia were locked out of tertiary education, she would lock Australians out here.

That would happen only if fees went up significantly for New Zealanders living in Australia.